Music-leaf turner.



No. 732,554. PATENTED JUNE 30, 1903.

H. H. HILL.

MUSIC LEAP TURNER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 4, 1903.

H0 IODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented June 30, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

MUSIC-LEAF TURNER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 732,554, dated June 30, 1903. Application filed April 4,1903. Serial No. 151,031. (No model.)

To all whmn it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY H. HILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Richmond Hill, in the county of Queens an d State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Music-Leaf Turners, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a device actuated by a finger of the performer for progressively turning the leaves of music, and the object of my device is to provide a structure adjustable for varying heights of music, with means for engaging and holding the sheets centrally, and with a folding or collapsible music support or rack adapted, with the music-leaf turner,to occupy a comparatively small space.

In carrying out my invention and in combination with a series of rotary spring-actuated barrels of ordinary construction and se ries of turning-fingers connected to said barrels I employ means actuated by the finger of the performer for releasing the said springactuated barrels one at a time progressively, which means are spring-actuated and adjustable, and I provide means for adjustably supporting and holding the said actuating means and the said spring barrels and fingers to parallel uprights, which form parts of the music support or rack. I provide a springheld and finger-actuated structure upon the outer surface of these devices, which mechanism is adapted to engage the sheets of music centrally, and the music support or rack is composed of pivotallyconnected portions adapted to fold up vertically alongside of the said upright and parallel plates, all of which structure is hereinafter more particularly described.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a rear elevation illustrating my improvement. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan at a: 00 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevation and partial vertical section of the major portion of the finger-operated release device. Fig. 4 is a front elevation, and Fig. 5 a side elevation, of the devices for engaging and holding the sheets of music centrally.

a represents a series of rotary spring-actuated barrels of ordinary construction in this art superimposed and provided with a head I), to which is attached a central pin passing through the series of barrels, there being a base-plate a, upon which said barrels are superimposed and to which the pin of said head I) is connected, said base-plate in turn being connected to a cross-bar c. I provide a guide plate 0, preferably formed with the cross-bar c and having a lower end 0 which may be formed integral therewith or connected thereto. A series of leaf-turning fingers d are connected to the series of rotary spring-actuated barrels, one finger to each barrel, and in the normal position of the parts all of said fingers are on the right-hand side, facing the device, and as released. turn one at a time progressively to the left, said barrels as heretofore constructed in this art being provided with alining perforations, through which a pin g passes to normally connect them together and hold them with the springs of the barrels under tension.

I employ a cross-bar e and a clamping-screw e", passing centrally through the cross-bar a into the cross-bar c, and between these crossbars at their ends I provide upright plates ff, which are part of the music support or rack. Said plates come between these cross-bars,and when said cross-bars are held by the clamping-screw the plates are gripped and the said bars and the devices connected thereto and which they support are of course held in a fixed position.

The pin g has connected to it a rack g, and between the base of the rack and the upper surface of the end 0 there is a helical spring 2 around said pin.

I provide a guide 3 on the back of the plate a and between said guide'and said plate a latch h, to the lower end of which one end of a bent springh is secured, the free end of the spring passing through the guide 3 and having a tendency to force the tooth of the latch it toward the teeth of the rack g. The upper end of this latch h is inclined at 4, as shown by dotted lines,'Fig. 1, and I provide a pin 5 in the cross-bar 0, against which the inclined upper end of the latch bears, so that when said latch is drawn down the spring h forces the tooth of the same forward toward the teeth of the rack, this forward movement being permitted by the in cline with the downward movement of the latch. The latch 71 is connected to a rod 2', and the rod passes between guidepins 6. It passes through the end 0? of the guide-plate c and is provided with a collar,

between which and the upper surface of the end 0 there is around said rod 2' a helical spring 7, the function of the spring beingto elevate the rod i and the latch h, the function of the spring 2 being also to elevate the rack g and the pin g, to which the said rack is connected, so as to force the upperend of the pin g through the various alining holes of the series of rotary spring-actuated barrels.

I provide a guide-block 71; with a set-screw, and through this guide-blook the rod 1' passes and is clamped by the set-screw to said guideblock. A rod i is secured at its upper end to the guide-block and at its lower end is 0011- nected to the finger-lever Z, pivoted at 8 to a bracket on the horizontal member an of the music support or rack. This member 0% is riveted to the lower ends of the upright plates f f and extends slightly beyond the same, and a second horizontal member an, at a higher elevation, also passes across the plates ff, is riveted thereto, and extends beyond, and, tovgether with these upright plates and the said horizontal mem bers, the music support or rack is composed of pairs of pivoted members a, 0, and r at one side andn, o, and r at the opposite side, 72 and 1" being pivoted at one end of m and 'm and 0 pivoted to the free ends of r and a, while a and r are pivoted to the other free ends of m and m and o pivoted to the free ends of a and r. In Fig. 1 I have shown at the right-hand side of the drawings the members a, r, and 0 as folded into a substantially vertical position against the platef, while the parts a, 0, and r, at the other side, are shown in horizontal and vertical positions, but broken off for compactness. In use the parts or members m, n, and n occupy a horizontal line at their base to be placed upon and adj ustably connected to the rack-plate of a piano or other similar musical instrument.

On the outer face of the cross-bar c I secure posts 9 10 at an appreciable distance apart, and these posts are perforated in line for the bar 8. Around said bar 8, between the posts, is a helical spring 11, with one end connected to the bar by passing around a pin in the bar, While the other end of the spring bears against the surface of the cross-bar 0. One end of the bar 8 is made as a turned-down finger s, and to the opposite end of said bar 8 is connected a rocker-arm t by a set screw 12. Normally, as shown in Fig. 5, the free end of the finger s bears upon the surface of the cross-bar 0; but when the head of the rockerarm is forced by the finger toward the plate 0 the finger s of the bar 5 moves away from the plate 0, and in this position the folded center of a piece of music or book opened out can be brought beneath or to the rear of the finger s, so that when the rocker-arm t is released the action of the spring 11 brings said finger against said music or book to hold the same at or near the center to prevent the music or book becoming accidentally displaced.

From the illustration and foregoing description it will be evident that the series of springactuated barrels, the cross-bar 0, plate 0', turning-fingers d, cross-bar e, and the parts for operating the fingers connected to the back of the plate 0 may be moved vertically, or, in other words, longitudinally of the upright plates ff by loosening the clamping-screw e and the clamping-screw of the guide-block 7t so as to adjust the distance that the said parts occupy to the base or plates m, n, and n in .proportion to the height of the sheet of music or book to be held and the leaves of which are to be turned.

From Fig. 2 it will be noticed that the respective ends of the cross-bars c and e are slightly notched to receive the opposite corners of the upright platesff, so that the bearings are thereby formed for guiding the parts along said plates f f it being only necessary, when the right position is attained, to clamp the screw 6' and thereafter the screw of the guide-block 7a, not only for the position, but for the operation of the device.

I claim as my invention- 1. In a music-leaf turner the combination with aseries of rotary spring-actuated barrels, leaf-turning fingers, means for holding the same and for progressively releasing the same for their operation, of clamping devices to which said parts are connected and uprightplate supports to which said parts are clamped and along which said parts are movable when released for effecting an adjustment.

2. In a music-leaf turner, the combination with a series of spring-actuated barrels, leafturning fingers, means for holding the same and for progressively releasing the same for their operation, of clamping devices to which said parts are connected, and upright-plate supports to which said parts are clamped and along which said parts are movable when released for effecting an adjustment, and ad justable devices operated by the finger of the performer and capable of coaction with the hereinbefore-named adjustable devices.

3. In a music-leaf turner, the combination with a series of rotary spring-actuated barrels, leaf -turning fingers, means for holding the same and for progressively releasing the same for their operation, of coacting plates and a connecting clamping-screw to one of which plates said devices are connected and by which they are supported, upright plates arranged parallel to one another and forming guides along which said parts maybe moved and to which the same may be clamped by the clamping-screw, and adjustable devices for operating said leaf-turning fingers which are actuated by the finger of the performer.

4. In a music-leaf turner, the combination with a series of rotary spring-actuated barrels, leaf-turning fingers, means for holding the same and for progressively releasing the same for their operation, of coacting plates and a connecting clamping-screw'to one of which said devices are connected and by which they are supported, upright plates arranged parallel to one another and forming guides along which said parts may be moved and to which the same may be clamped by the clampingscrew, adjustable devices for operating said leaf-turnin g fingers which are actuated by the finger of the performer, horizontal spacedapart members to which the upright plates are connected and by which they are supported, and series of pivoted members in pairs at either side of said upright plates and pivoted to the horizontal members thereof and back forming a music support or rack.

5. In a music-leaf turner, the combination with series of rotary spring-actuated barrels, series of leaf-tn rnin g fingers connected therewith,supporting devices and means connected to the said rotary spring-actuated barrels for supporting the same adj ustably thereon, of a pin passing through alined holes in said spring-barrels, a rack connected thereto and a spring for actuating the same and normally maintaining said pin in said hole, a latch, a guide therefor, a spring for normally pressing the latch toward the rack, a rod attached to the latch, guides for the said rod, and a fingerlever for operating the rod to draw down the latch and engage and operate the rack.

6. In a music-leaf turner, the combination with series of rotary spring-actuated barrels, series of leaf-turning fingers connected therewith, supporting devices and means connected to the said rotary spring-actuated barrels for supporting the same adjustably thereon, of a pin passing through alined holes in said spring-barrels, a rack connected thereto and a spring for actuating the same and normally maintaining the said pin in said hole, a latch, a guide therefor, a spring for normally pressing the latch toward the rack, a rod attached to the latch, a finger-lever for operating the rod to draw down the latch and engage and operate the rack, guides for the said rod, the upper end of the latch being tapered or inclined, and an adjacent pin taking a bearing against said incline to draw the latch away from the rack with the upward movement and to permit the latch to move toward the rack with a downward movement.

Signed by me this 4th day of March, 1903.

HENRY H. HILL.

\Vitnesses:

WALTER H. BUNN, PETER W. MAGUIRE. 

